Teenage Years
by Shirayuki Yukiko
Summary: In the end, I think all we were through the grown-ups eyes were a couple of misfits trying to find ourselves. But we had dreams. Red for example, he wanted to do something important for human rights. Yellow, she wanted to help the enviroment. Ruby wanted to start a big fashion line, and Diamond wanted to be a famous comedian. And me? I just really wanted... him. Highschool. AU.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Avoid the popular kids

Hey guys! I know I haven't updated in a long while, I'm sorry! Which is why I start the new year with a brand new story! Please now that the POV's in this story are varieties. The POV's are not told, so you have to figure it out yourself. Thank you for reading, and enjoy! Psst… Also review ;)

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon Special/ Pokémon Adventures. No copyright intended.

^/^

I gulped slowly as I stared up at the enormous school. What was I doing here? I, Crystal Aes, had been promised this was the last time my father decided my family had to move because of his job. That's why I couldn't understand why I was still nervous. Well, maybe because school for the other students had started three months ago, and I wasn't going to make any friends. It didn't matter, though. I didn't plan on getting any friends in this school either. Sure, I'm nice, but I'd rather study than hang out.

I straightened my school uniform, which I still wondered about. It was white, with a gray… or more like silver colored, skirt. There was a ribbon in the same color on the chest, and it had a silver colored, sailor like, very short cape on the back. Well, it may seem like there was no reason for me to be curious about the school uniforms, but there had actually been a quiz when you got into the school, and when I looked at the school web at the uniforms, the uniform had been red. I looked down at my chest, and saw that the little name plate was still there. It was white colored, with squiggly patterns in silver on it.

_"Crystal Aes,_

_Seventh grade, class 7b,_

_Team Silver" _Well, there goes my guess about different school uniform colors for different grades. Instead, I wanted to know just what "Team Silver" meant.

I looked over at the schedule I got, and then looked at the pillar standing in between two entrances. There was a map on the pillar, and I decided to look at it. I looked down at the schedule again. "Monday: 8.20 a.m., Homeroom, classroom E127". I looked down at my watch, soon realizing I had 5 minutes left. I ran fast through the gate to the right. I had never been late before, and I wasn't planning to be now, either.

^/^

The classroom wasn't hard to find. She had to pass a lot of people on the way there, though. It made her wonder, how big was this school, really? There were a lot of students, and all wearing different colors on their uniforms.

She managed to get into the classroom three minutes early, and therefore, tried to find an empty seat. However, Crystal soon found it hard, since she kept getting disturbed by laughter and chatter. She looked over to where the noise was coming from, and saw a crowd around a bench. She then saw a seat, next to the window, so she decided to sit down and watch the crowd from over there.

The crowd was mostly boys and girls trying to get attention from two persons sitting by the bench. Well, one black haired boy was sitting in the bench, while a brown haired boy was sitting on his bench, with her legs crossed.

_'Ugh… "cool" kids. I'll just keep away from them…' _Crystal thought, as she went to her seat. Yet, something was keeping her interest focused. She could just barely see and hear what was happening.

"So… you're coming this weekend, right? Right?" A black haired girl said, with admiration in her eyes. The rude girl smiled. Crystal still thought the brown haired girl was rude, sitting all over his bench like that.

"Oh, yeah! Totally!" She bent down to the boy sitting in the bench. She put her hand on his cheek, giving him a soft, almost begging smile.

"You'll be there too, right? Come on?" She ran her fingers through his hair, still looking him in the eyes. Crystal shivered. She didn't know people would behave like that. To her surprise, the boy grinned a wide smile, giving her the same seductive look back.

"Since when do I ditch a chance to party?" The crowd laughed in unison, and the girl hugged the boys head, saying "yaay". Our heroine sigh, she was so tired of this girl already.

_'Do act a little more like a wild person. Be a little more seductive, please. Do play with his feelings just a little more… Or rather, get a life.'_

Thankfully, the teacher entered the classroom, scattering the crowd. Crystal soon realized that the brown haired girl continued to the seat in front of her. She sighs inside, hoping the girl wouldn't start a conversation. The teacher seemed stressed over something, and she seemed really nervous.

"Oh, Okay… Today, as you know, we've gotten a new transfer student. Now… I'm not really sure where…" The black haired girl raised her hand. Crystal was so tired of being unnoticed.

"I'm here." All eyes were directed at her, and she slowly tried not to look away.

"Oh… Well, that's great! Do you mind… er… come up here in front and introduce yourself?" Crystal didn't respond, she stood up abruptly, and walked up in front.

"Hello. My name is Crystal, but you can call me Crys." It was silent for a while, so she pressed out a smile. Then, Crys looked back at the teacher, to see if that was good enough. Apparently, it wasn't.

"So… miss…" She looked down in her papers, and then back at Crys. "Miss Aes, can you tell us some more about yourself? Oh… and which team are you in?" Crystal felt her head spinning around to fast, feeling more confused than ever. What was she supposed to say?

"Well… em… I don't really understand but… I… I think everything says on my name tag. It may make sense to you, in difference to me…" Everyone laughed at her, and the teacher gave Crys a weird look. Then, she looked down at Crystal's name tag.

"Oh." She let out a giggle. "Silver, will you please show this student around?" She asked with a smile. Crys didn't really understand, but she waited, hoping she would understand in time. A red haired boy rose from his seat behind the black haired boy from the crowd earlier. Crys felt bad for not even noticing him. As he walked up in front, she heard someone in the class wining something about; "No! Not another Silver…". This seemed to make him angry, as he shot a glare at the girl who had dared to comment, before he rolled his eyes at the teacher, and quickly grabbed Crystal's arm, pulling her out of sight from the other classmates within seconds. As he let her go, Crys eyes widened, before getting herself together.

"Just look at the schedule to know where to go. Ask a friend about where to go, or something. Not my problem. Meet me here after class is over, so I can show you where our house is. Any questions?" Crystal just stood there, with big eyes. She literally stared at the boy. He had pulled her right out of the classroom, saying nothing but things that meant; "whatever you do, I don't care about. Meet me here after class".

"Wait… what house…? I live in my house…?" He gave her a skeptical look, as if saying he thought she was stupid. Then he sighs loudly.

"How much do you know about this school?" Before Crys had come here, she would say she knew a lot. She knew what the uniforms looked like, and she knew some of the teacher names. But… now, she felt stupid. She came to remember that it wasn't she herself that had signed up for the school, but her parents. She had bothered looking at the school uniforms, and teachers, as well as the "top students" section, but she had never looked at something else than that.

"I don't know… I…"

"This is a boarding school." I couldn't take it anymore. HER PARENTS SIGNED HER UP ON A BOARDING SCHOOL! SHE NEVER MADE ANY FRIENDS! HOW WAS SHE SUPPOSED TO LIVE WITH PEOPLE SHE DIDN'T KNOW FOR THREE YEARS!

"WHAT!" I was close to fainting. I had never ever, thought this would happen. The boy did nothing. He sighs once again.

"I can't take this anymore." He turned around and opened the classroom door, and closed it behind himself. Crys was left there, close to losing it.

^/^

I looked up from the test as I saw Silver entering the room again. Wasn't he supposed to be with the newbie? I opened my mouth, about to ask, but I was interrupted by the red haired boy by the door.

"Miss Jasmine, I wish permission to get help from my fellow house leaders." I smiled. Once again, Silver couldn't handle talking. He had also, just saved me from another boring quiz. Nicole Winter would forever be thankful for this one!

"Miss, whatever this is about, you know I will forever help one in need." Okay, so maybe I wanted to get rid of this lesson, but I wasn't lying. The purple's are forever known for their kindness and helpfulness. I would know, trust me. Miss Jasmine sighed at us, and then turned towards Silver.

"I'd love to help you, but you know I need a reason for letting it go, Silver." Damn. What if my red haired classmate's explanation wasn't good enough? I exchanged a look with my black haired friend, who was sitting in the middle of the classroom. He looked at me with a grin of amusement, and I tried not to laugh. He was SO amused whenever someone failed at doing something. I gave him a smirk back. Because if Silver ever needed help with anything, he wouldn't ask him, which means my dear friend has to stay here with the test.

"My judgment says this student needs a lot of help. I think we might even need to go get Senior Ruber for this, talk to the student, and eventually, we might even have to bring this case to the principal." Now, this was more than I expected. Did something happen? The feeling came back. Nobody had it stronger than me, well possibly the last leader. I was worried. What happened to the girl? What was her name…? Crys? She seemed nice. I really hope nothing bad happened to her…

"I give you my permission to do what you think is necessary." That means I can move. Of course, my eager to help, made me rose first of all. I kicked in my chair towards the table, and quickly ran out the door, screaming "Thanks, teach!" before exiting. I just wanted to help the newbie, so I didn't care about the fact that I left my three friends back in the classroom. It didn't matter though, they where all so slow. I can see how they're not even trying to get out of there faster.

^/^

"And as you see, we humans must do some sacrifices for the earth to survive." Now, I know I should be listening, but I have an excuse, really. Okay, so it's not that good of an excuse, but it works right? It's not my fault she's so cute… And now when she's so focused and caring too.

"Mr. Brock?" She had raised her hand and looked really engaged in the subject.

"Yes, Yellow?" God, make her eyes stop sparkling like that. God, stop me from falling in love. I don't want to.

"Is there any possibility that you could tell us how we can help?" The brown haired teacher frowned, but then, he told her; "Of course…" and then started writing down options on the blackboard. My blond crush started to eagerly write the tips down in her notebook. I glanced over at her, unknowingly smiling a wide grin, as she put her blond bangs behind her ear. Oh God. Oh well, I guess I'll have to face it.

Amarillo de bosque verde, or as we call her; Yellow. She's the prettiest girl in the world to me. She's got long blond hair, which is rarely seen, as she puts it in buns on her head. Her eyes are like ambers, and they sparkle in the sun. She's spotless, kind, beautiful, Yellow is everything good. She's so different from me. I try to be a good guy, but I'll never get close to her kindness. She'll never like me in that way, she'll be honest, and kind, and slowly, gently let me down easy.

Yellow slowly realized I was looking at her, with a troubled look on my face. At first, she got shy, as she usually does, and turned her head away. I didn't really react, and so she noticed. I must have looked really weird, just sitting there, staring at her. The troubled look soon appeared on her face as well.

"S-Senior Red…? Is something w-wrong….?" Her words are like a slap to the face, it wakes me up instantly. For a second, I was confused, I had been thinking so much about her, and things she'd say, that I wasn't really sure where I was for a second. Looking around, I soon realized all my classmates, as well as Mr. Brock, where all looking at me. It's okay though. Everyone in this school knows about me, so I can't really embarrass myself. I smiled and waved my hand at them, turning around, smiling at my blond crush.

"I'm fine, I'm fine!" A smirk spread through the faces of my classmates, as they turned back to their notebooks. They all thought the same thing, but it didn't bother me. They can think what they want; I'm NOT falling in love. With anyone, especially not now, the last year.

"Well, Red. I think we've all came to understand that you've got some things to think about. Now, I know she's cute, but please try and stay focused in class. Okay?" My classmates started laughing, and Mr. Brock nodded at me, with his usual cheerful smile. Yellow's blush turned into a crimson color, as she felt embarrassed for not understanding the joke. I smiled at my class, I had been with them for so long, and we really had this connection. Besides, no joke could rob me of my popularity.

"Understood, Mr. Brock." The teacher smiled at me, and I smiled back. It sounds stupid, but Brock wasn't just a teacher to me, but a friend as well. He had been a ninth-grader when I started this school. I'd transferred here as a sixth-grader, and been really confused. I still miss my family, but I was transferred mostly because I had no family left. My grandma thought that if she could only pay the fee, and send me to this school, everything would be fine. I was meant to start this school, sing everything out, and only hang out with new friends, thus everything would be fine. Well, I suppose it worked. I have lots of friends, and Brock and some other teachers, helped me a lot. He was always there for me. Look at us now, I'm a ninth-grader, and he's teaching ecology.

"Good, now Red, keep writing, or I might just give you an F." With that, the conversation was over, and I nodded at him. Directing my smile back at my notebook so that I could write. I'm not sure how long it took. Just sitting there, writing with my pencil, slowly waiting for the lesson to end. I do know that I didn't get to finish though. A loud knock on the door stopped everyone. It may just be afterwards that you can say there was something different with it all. To build up the tension, when you tell someone about it, sharing a story. That's why it's hard to say if the whole atmosphere and just this knocking was different. All I know is, it changed a lot later on.

"Red, can you open it for me?" I did as Brock said. I walked towards the door, and slowly opened it. I was soon faced by a girl. My junior, to be exact, I was familiar with her. She was at the Leaders meetings, but I still wasn't sure if I liked her that much. She could be such a snob sometimes, and the fact that she waves her light-blond hair in people's faces is just annoying. She also looks slightly irritated all the time, so she gave me the impression that she needs to soften up a little.

"Senior Ruber, we need your help. So if you could please be a little helpful here?" Oh right. That's why I don't like her, she's constantly rude. Apparently, I wasn't the only one who was irritated about it. I soon heard a loud sigh from behind her. A brown haired girl walked up to us, and gently pushed the girl aside. She nodded to me, and I recognized her as one of my friends.

"That's about enough from you, Hazel. Red, I, I mean we, could use your help. We have a… case that's rather… confusing." She looked over behind her, showing the problem was over there. I looked over her shoulder, to see what it was. What I saw, was just what my friend told me it was, confusing. A black haired girl was sitting with her hands on her knees. Her hair was tight up in ponytails and her eyes where nailed to the ground. It was hard to see what was wrong at first, but then she raised her head and looked at me. It was like a cold shower, I could see myself in her. Her eyes where bright indigo, but that didn't matter. Her eyes where empty. She was lost, confused, and I could see it. It was the same look I had wore when I came here. I remember it so clear. Nothing but wonder, just one thought.

_'Where am I?'_

"What happened to her!" My brown haired friend's eyes widened. I don't think she's ever seen me upset, especially not over someone I had never met before. But how could I help myself? I looked back and forth from my friend Nicole, to the girl sitting on the floor. Behind Nicole, standing beside the girl, was a black haired boy. He looked up at me, and I soon recognized his golden eyes as Gold's.

"Red! What's going on?" I looked back into the classroom to see my teacher's eyes staring at me with a troubled look. I looked at him, back at my friends, and at my crush. Yellow looked at me with confusion. Amber eyes gave me warmth and strength. Courage.

"Well, Mr. Brock, you see… We have quite the situation here."

^/^

"Okay, so why are you all here again?" The old man looked at us all, and I shivered at his Falk looking eyes. If I think about all the times I had been sent to the principal, I had never thought I would go there voluntary. The old man scared me a little, though I would never admit that. Especially not in front of Green, he would give me a big punch on the nose. Although that may not be THAT bad, as Nicole would probably visit me in the hospital. Hospital party, yay!

We we're all sitting in front of his desk, most of us worried over the newbie. I didn't really care that much though, as I'd just tagged along to get rid of miss Jasmine's tests. The newbie was sitting in the middle, still looking like she knew nothing about… well, pretty much _anything_. I looked at her a little more thoroughly, and noticed she was actually really cute. My experience from girls said most guys probably don't notice the bright indigo eyes and raven black hair under the "studying girl" appearance. If any of those guys had actually really looked at her, they had realized what I did now; she was beautiful. Although I guess that's kind of hard to see right now, since she's practically hyperventilating. Okay not really, but you get what I mean.

"We need to see the Crystal Aes files, sir."

Between me and her, was my red haired childhood friend, Silver. I'm guessing they placed him there to keep me quiet. Nobody trusts me to not make a ruckus or joke, thinking that I'll make any situation worse. That's probably what Silver always did. I've always tried to get closer to Silver, but for some reason he keeps all kind of feelings inside, refusing to share the slight little emotion with me. So we go hard core, just like Silver acts. Silver does not care, Silver does not talk, Silver does NOT SMILE. Though then again, I guess I can't blame him. I played hard core two, we are like rivals, and will never accept to lose against each other. I was more like the cocky type. Which of course pist Silver of.

"And why is that?" The deputy Vice-chancellor, Jonathan Elm said, correcting the glasses on his nose. His light brown hair turned lighter below the lamp, as he stood by the principal's desk. I actually liked Mr. Elm a little, he looked strain, but really he's nice.

"Because she's completely lost, and apparently she's also incapable of taking care of herself." In the back, sitting in a red armchair, was Hazel. I never really liked her, to be honest, I don't think many do. Her long light blond hair got down to her back, and her eyes where hazelnut brown. A lot of guys would probably be all over her, if it wasn't for her bad attitude. I trust her a little though. She was childhood friends with Nicole. What was that figure of speech again? _"The friend of my friend is a friend"? _

"Hazel, that's enough." Everyone but Hazel shivered slightly at the hardness in Nicole's voice. Nicole was always a warm hearted caring girl, but Hazel had known her during middle school, and apparently Nicole had been… a little more violent than now. Though she always cared for others, my guess is Hazel gets that voice a lot. Well, Nicole tries hard to be a nice and supporting person, doing her best to be there for anyone. She always gives money to the homeless on the street if she can, and she swears she would give up her life to make the world just a slight bit better. I really love her, and the way her eyes lighten up and smiles at you on a rainy Monday morning. The way her blue eyes are filled with empathy as her brown hair connects with the sad person she embraces. When did I turn into such a sentimental person? Anyways, it's not that kind of love.

"Mr. Oak, Mr. Elm, Crystal here seems to be very confused about this whole school. We were hoping you could spread some… facts about this situation?" Now, all had spoke but me. Usually, I would complain loudly about being here, but for once I decided to 'shut up', as Nicole usually says when I really annoy her. This time, I would just watch and listen. After all, the person who had just spoke has something not many people have; my respect. His crimson red eyes met Mr. Oak's with complete determination. His black hair, which was about the same color as mine; carp black, spiked up as it usually did, as if to show that it was also determined. He was of course respected among almost all people in this school. His name was, Red Ruber. He was senior class president, he was allowed to join the principal's school meetings, and always did so, to express the student's opinions. He worked every day to make the school better for everyone. He was the 'school prince', as to say. But most importantly, Red was a nice guy, and a friend of mine.

"Hmm… I suppose. Let me find the files…" Mr. Oak took out a map filled with papers from his office desk. "Ah, here it is. Let's see here… Crystal Aes, transferred here today from Virginia middle school…"The girl, who apparently was named Crystal, seemed to get more and more confused, a feeling that I soon saw developed into a strong feeling of shock and panic. It all ended when she ran out of the room, ran from it all, leaving me and my friends watching her back as she faded longer and longer away.

^/^

My mind was empty of thoughts. All I could do was simple movements, like playing with my dark hair. Now I understand what those mindless long blond haired cheerleaders felt like. As I played with strands of my black hair, it had never felt so different. I trusted my eyes to navigate me through life, to show everything as it used to look, but suddenly I doubted they were still the same color. But then again, if they're not bright indigo anymore, than what color would they be? Blue? Brown or green, maybe? I shivered, and suddenly I wished so hard they were normal, I wished so much everything would just be normal again but… nope. I had tried so long now to make it go away, to make it disappear for just a second, so that I could think of something else, and take control of my mind and body, just for a second to be able to think straight.

Apparently, that wasn't going to happen. It invaded my mind, pressed against my temples, forcing me to my knees. It was like being trapped inside yourself, while the wall's came closer. It wasn't possible anymore. I couldn't escape anymore. Always, when something was bothering me I'd hid myself in a book, and escape from reality. Not this time, it pressed me down, whispered the same words inside my head, over and over again.

_'Your family abandoned you… They don't care about you… You know that they never did. Your family abandoned…' _ My own brain was revolting against me, and another voice constantly tried to explain to me that I lied to myself, that my family would never do that. Of course, I had realized that was a lie a while ago. How long had it been sense I left the principal's office? My sense of time had completely collapsed. It didn't matter though. Somehow everything succeeded to lose my care, as the world crashed down on my shoulders.

It was all so ironic. I hated apple juice, especially in tetra form. I guess the five year old me didn't know back then, when she had decided it wasn't good, that I'd be offered one now. A female hand gripped around the tetra, holding it towards me. My eyes followed from her purple nail paint, to her arm, until I stared straight into a pair of ocean blue eyes. They looked at me with a smile, as to hide the pity and empathy she had deep inside them.

"Drink, it'll make you feel better." My eyes scanned the tetra pack for some seconds, and I soon found myself wondering what to do with it. _'Jameson's Apple Juice' _it said, with black calligraphy. It had a straw attached to the little package, and it reminded me that I was supposed to drink it. Without a thought of my childish taste for juice, I drank the juice quickly. Soon the package was drained from any kind of liquid, and I threw the tetra in a trashcan on the other side of the hall. Embracing my courage, I looked up at the girl, straight into her eyes. My eyes widened as I realized she was the popular girl I had observed earlier in the classroom. The "popular kid", that I had despised so much. Now, she was completely different. Her ocean blue eyes contrasted against the auburn brown hair, and her red lips where curved to a smile. She was short, very short for our age, making her look slightly younger than the others. The school uniform she whore was similar to mine, only the skirt was purple, and her white shirt had a lingering purple lily stretching from the right waist to the left breast. It was pretty, and the light button shirt fitted her well.

"I'm Nicole Winter. You're Crystal, right?" She stretched her hand out to me, and I took it politely. In her eyes I found understanding, in her eyes I found hope. And I thought that just maybe, maybe, things would turn to the better. A handshake, wrapped up with a smile and a promise off hope.

"You can call me Crys"

^/^

I realize this chapter might be a little depressive, long. I hope you don't mind, it gets funnier. Good reviewers will get an answer on questions. A flamer will be ignored though to their flaming-ness. Please tell me what you think, and feel free to ask any questions about plot, characters etc. Criticism is welcome :D

Review, thanks 333 / Yuko


	2. The Opal Academy (Day 2 part 1)

Hi guys! I haven't written a chapter on this story for a while. From now on, I'm going to update a chapter for each story at a time so for those of you who are waiting for "Letters from Nobody" to update, it's coming next! (Sorry about bad updating , will update more when summer starts.) Also; there's a poll in my profile about whether or not I should keep writing on "Just another Tanabata". I started writing it two years ago, and the beginning is really bad so I'm thinking about now continuing. So if you would please remember to vote on that; it would help me A LOT! Thanks!

Another typical mainstream DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN ANYTHING. IF I DID, IT WOULDN'T BE A FANFIC?

The morning began like all other. As usual, it takes some time to remember everything. I groaned slowly, trashing from side to side as the alarm clock rang its usual "good morning, good morning" tone. As I started to wake up, I stroke the strands of black hair from my face to see someone quickly rise in the bed on the other side of the room.

"Will you please shut that thing off? It is most annoying!" I blinked multiple times, to see who was talking to me. At the other end of the room, a girl had rose from her bed. I studied her closely, seeing how she had dropped her black eye mask with white lace on the edges. Her carp black hair was tousled, yet I could see that if she just ran her fingers through it, it would be perfectly straight and shining. I'm guessing her hair products wouldn't have a price my pay check could afford. Her eyes were a mysterious color of silver, and her night gown was a white creamy color.

"So? Shut it off?" She stared at me with an annoyed look, which could also be token as "are you stupid, or what?" I sat up quickly, and clicked off the white alarm clock. Looking around, I remembered all about yesterday. That's right. I wasn't home anymore, my parents sent me to a boarding school. Opal Academy. Yesterday, I would've cried. Now, I smiled to myself. A new life is a better life.

I stood up to make the bed, and looked around the room. It had an interesting design. The draperies and the blankets had a metallic silver color. So did the carpet. The blankets were the softest ones I've ever slept in, and I had dreamed about a boy I didn't know all night. I didn't bother thinking about it as I continued to look around.

I had a suspicion that my room was bigger than others. My roommate seemed really classy, and when I had come to the room yesterday, she had simply looked at me with a displeased look. As if she didn't want to share the room with me. She had a king sized bed, what else could she demand? Scratch that, from the look of her, she could demand a lot. Her part of the split up room was extremely fancy. I had left most of my belongings in my old apartment but her side was full of all kinds of useful and useless things. Her wardrobe was enormous, even though the school had uniforms.

The big room had about one flaw. The bathroom was shared. That was a problem for me right now, because I hadn't really been clean since yesterday morning.

"Hey, do you mind if I shower?" I think my roommate was about 3 years younger than me but she looked very mature for her age, I'll give her that. She took a glance at her alarm clock (that also looked expensive by the way) and turned inwards to think. Then she turned to me.

"I suppose I can accept that. However, I would appreciate if you would not drag your tail." I nodded and entered the bathroom. The bathroom was extraordinary, with a humongous mirror and a lot of styling tools. The real trophy of the room was, to my delight, the shower.

The water was amazing. I could even change the color of the ray. I'm pretty certain I could've gotten a massage with this complicated, deluxe shower but I decided not to press too many buttons. One of my first rules was never to temple with things that aren't yours.

When I stepped out of my shower I saw my roommate's eyes staring at me in anticipation. It was clear she had something to say, but was unsure how to phrase it. I try to stay nice, but really I often try to avoid getting to friendly. Or rather, I had no idea how to even get friendly.

"Pardon me, I…" My roommate started, before she tried again. "- I am most aware that I acted quite rude this morning, please accept my apologies. I am accustomed to sharing my room, thus the irritation." I blinked a few times. I had assumed she would be a rich snob, but this was actually nice. The truth is I had a bunch of assumptions made up about her too.

"That's alright. I promise I won't touch any of your stuff." I said, about to open my wardrobe.

"I appreciate that. I usually don't tell my names to commoners but… I am named Platinum Berlitz." I smiled at her, she was really trying. It was obvious, and kind of sweet.

"Crystal Aes."

/

My feet made a thumping sound while rapidly colliding with the stairs. I was never late and I would be about ten minutes early even without running, but I enjoyed keeping a fast and effective tempo. The stairs had led me down to some kind of common room; the exact same one Nicole had led me through when taking me to my room yesterday. After breaking down in anxiety yesterday, she had led me to my room and I had stayed there for the rest of the day. She'd taken care of me and promised to meet me here this time today.

I looked around and saw the brown haired girl I'd met yesterday a couple of meters away. I soon recognized the two boys that were accompanying her too; it was the red haired boy that had told me this was a boarding school and the black haired boy who Nicole had chatted with yesterday morning. They were all standing in a row, as if trying to look presidential for something. I was just close enough to hear what they were saying but they still hadn't spotted me.

"… Why you're in my house again?" The red head said. I tried to remember what his name was. What had Miss Jasmine said…?

"Because I took care of her yesterday and the principal gave me permission to show her around and explain how it works here. Considering yesterdays breakdown, I think she trusts me. She needs a steady point. Besides, I think she seems nice." Nicole said with a smile on her face. The black haired boy just nodded.

"Whatever. Just explain why HE has to be here." The red haired boy said, glaring at the other boy. He didn't seem very happy about being close to Nicole or the black haired boy. The black haired boy opened his mouth to say something but Nicole interrupted him, avoiding the conflict.

"Look, Silver. I know you don't like us very much but please don't take it out here, okay? Gold's here because we need to be a represent able, united front." The brunet said, trying as I was only a few meters away now.

"I don't especially dislike you. I just think your world is shallow. If we're going to be united, then how come the blonde bitch isn't here?" The red head said with a snort.

"I think we all know why." The black haired boy said. I was close enough so that they could see me now. I didn't know what to say, so I just stood there.

"Crys!" Nicole beamed up and greeted me. "This is Gold" she pointed to the black haired boy to her right and then flipped her hand over so that it pointed to her left. "-And Silver. Silver is your leader." I still didn't understand what "leader" or "team" was supposed to mean but I said hi to the boys. Silver nodded.

"Hey. Is it hot in here? No wait. It's just you." Gold said and blinked with his right eye. In difference to his golden eyes, mine widened. What did he just say? I blinked a few times, thinking I must have misheard him. Nicole gave him a serious look after punching his shoulder.

"Is Crys a nickname for something?" He asked me. It made me nervous that his eyes wouldn't stop staring at me (and my body, for god's sake).

"Crystal." I said, mostly feeling slightly nauseous.

"I see. A precious type of rarity, much like your body." I should have felt flattered that he was hitting on me but mostly I couldn't figure out if he was making fun of me or not. I glanced at the only other girl in the group and sent her a pleading look. From the look I got back, I assumed that she was even more annoyed with him than I was.

"Alright Gold, that's quite enough from you for now. Crys, I got the day off from classes to show you around the campus, so neither of us needs to get to class today." I was actually thinking about confessing that I was looking forward to seeing if class in this school would be rewarding or just things I already knew. I decided not to say anything, coming to the conclusion that knowing my way around campus would prove useful in the end.

"Sure." I said.

/

The campus was amazing. The garden was like a piece of your fantasy only it was real. I had assumed the buildings would be nice and neatly ordered since people lived here but this was extreme. It was like something straight taken out of a fairytale about rich people going to school. Walking by, I watched the big fountain placed in the garden with amazement. This school was impressive. Actually, it was a tad bit wonderful. If someone had asked me what the first world that came to mind was when they said "Opal Academy" I probably wouldn't have said what I truly thought of it. _"A place where dreams can come true."_

"I think that's pretty much how far we get for now, because I can't really go much father with an empty stomach." I looked back behind me at my escort. My guide was standing a few meters back, with her hands in her back-pocket. She didn't look as impressed with the big fountain as I was and I had to remind myself that this was something she saw on a daily basis. I turned around; thinking that maybe getting some nutrition today couldn't be such a bad idea.

"Um, sure. I don't really know where to eat here…" Nicole looked at me and then slapped herself in the forehead with the palm of her hand. I didn't quite comprehend why but I guessed it was something I could ask about later. She smiled and apologized for not explaining this before.

"I was thinking we could talk about the systems of the school over lunch but then I haven't even explained the lunch system yet… You know what? This garden is a crossroad for each campus, so it's just a few short blocks from the main building. We can eat there, it's close to where we drank juice yesterday, remember?" I thought back to the moments after yesterday's anxiety attack and remembered being close to some sort of cafeteria. I nodded, to show her that I remembered. Bringing back her memories of my psych attack didn't seem like a smart move.

I followed Nicole through a wide gravel path and like she had been doing almost the whole day, she greeted a lot of people. This wasn't very surprising to me, I had already written her of as popular. Although I have to say that unlike past school's I'd been to, she didn't seem to be the mean type. It was strange; because that's the only type of popular I'd ever seen.

The path had lavender's and gardenia's planted beside it and I actually smiled again. Even I myself had noticed that ever since I came here (despite just being here two days) I'd smiled more often. It could be a good thing, I told myself.

Upon reaching the main building (which was humongous by the way) Nicole pushed the main entrance door out of the way and waved for me to step inside. I hesitated for a second but then made my feet move forward. The great hall was astounding. The roof was high and everywhere there were doors to new corridors, more space uncharted in my memory. I was always quick to learn my way around but the peculiar feeling that learning school territory wasn't the only thing I'd be doing this year, except studying.

Nicole waved at me to follow her and I let her lead me into a dining hall. Everywhere there was tables and stands with different types of food. I protested when Nicole offered to pay for me but was told that my money would be no good here. Frowning as I wondered what she meant, we decided (after a lot of protest from me, because I didn't want to waste Nicole's money) to eat sushi. She said it was to celebrate my arrival. I frowned again, finding it peculiar that she would act as if she was really glad about it. She had only known me for a couple of hours and yet… it almost seemed like she appreciated me.

We sat down and I let her show me how to use the wooden sticks. I learned how to master them quickly and the sushi was good. It didn't take long for my lunch comrade to wave someone over and I felt my hands getting sweaty. I wasn't good at making friends and had mostly avoided people in my past schools, because it was obvious to me that it wouldn't be long until my father acquired a new job.

The person Nicole had winked over was a boy. He had stood swarmed in boys and girls, but somehow he had still managed to shake each and every one of them off and came towards our table. He sat down next to Nicole, who smiled at him.

"I don't think I'll ever stop being amazed at how you can just get rid of them all like that." Nicole said and pointed to the hoard of people.

"Oh that?" The boy answered. "I just told them it was Leader business." He scrathed the back of his head, too show he wasn't proud about lying. Or was he lying? I had no idea what a "Leader" was.

His pitch-black hair was shoved back and forth by his hand as he smiled at Nicole. He was wearing the typical school uniform with a red tie. On his shirt a red flower was broidered on the lower left side. When he later directed his eyes on me, I was shocked to find out they were a crimson, red color. It made me consider the thought that he was wearing contacts.

"Hi! You're Crystal, right? The girl from yesterday?" I blinked a couple of times. He was talking to me. I shot Nicole a glance, but then changed my mind. It would be impolite to make her lead the conversation for me. I had to answer. I had no idea what to say, as stated earlier. I decided to shake his hand.

"Crystal Aes." I said, hoping to hear his name in return. It was always good to memorize names, even though I doubted I would use them that much.

"Red Ruber." Red… It was a strange name, but it matched his personality. "How are you? You looked a little frazzled yesterday… I'm not sure if I was much of a help." He scratched the back of his head and gave me an apologetic look. I realized that he was another one of the persons I had met yesterday. I must have been involved in a big traumatic shock, because it all seemed to be slowly be putting itself together in my brain.

"Oh, that's okay. I'm not… I mean, I don't usually…" I picked my words carefully. "Behave like that. I didn't mean to scare you, truth be told I just want to leave it behind me. Thank you." Red smiled.

"Okay, cool. Are you settling in yet?" He asked me, and then turned to Nicole. "I heard you got the whole day off just to show her around. Way to go, we all now getting a day off isn't easy here." Nicole nodded.

"I'm… I'm trying to take it all in, I suppose. There are still an hoard of things I don't quite comprehend, like… Like "food points", "Team Silver" or what you mean by "Leader business." I answered, trying to be truthful. They gave me an pitiful look.

"Yeah, sorry 'bout that." Red said. "It's a lot to take in, but we'll try to explain it to ya'."

((So what did you think? Love for reviewers, it would be great if you took the time (really makes my day, too!). Also please vote on poll in profile =) 3


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